Road struggles likely to continue with young group

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By Kyle Nagel, Staff Writer Updated 8:26 AM Friday, December 9, 2011

In back-to-back games, the Wright State men’s basketball team has fallen behind by 17 points midway through the first half.

On Saturday at home against Youngstown State, the Penguins used hot shooting to take a 30-13 advantage that the Raiders chopped down to six points by halftime on the way to a one-point Horizon League win.

On Wednesday on the road against Air Force, the Falcons used a physical presence to keep WSU’s offense at bay in surging to a 21-4 advantage. This time, Wright State couldn’t get its offense in order and fell 55-34, producing the fewest points in program history.

One major difference, especially for a team including four available freshmen and four sophomores? The Air Force game was far away from home in Colorado Springs, Colo.

A younger team has much more offensive confidence playing in its home gym, as even the freshmen will be more apt to attack or take open shots with the comfort of familiar surroundings. On the road, such deficits seem much more overwhelming.

“There weren’t any different shots than ones we made against Youngstown State,” said WSU coach Billy Donlon. “We didn’t make them, and being on the road, we couldn’t recover.”

The Raiders have shown they can compete at home, with three wins and two losses that came in the final minute. Road games have been more challenging, and that adjustment will continue throughout the season.

Just one road nonconference game remains this calendar year, against Miami University on Saturday. Four straight home games follow, during which the Raiders hope to improve their confidence before a year-end trip to Chicago for games against Loyola and UIC.

Because, after Wednesday, the offensive confidence is fragile.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-7389 or knagel@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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